This has always been one of my favorite BLOG's....if for no reason than it tremendously irritated the few individuals I had in mind when I wrote the BLOG.....all is fair in love and war, isn't it?

Yes, i can be very irreverent at times…. I know this about myself. I’ve taken quite a few ‘punches’ over the years and I’ve learned to react with a strange sense of humor or just by sheer frustration. However, I’m not just a survivor; I tend to look at myself as thriving…hence, the attempt at writing a blog on OCD in the workplace. It is real, very real. One in 40 American adults has obsessive-compulsive disorder....

A very long time ago in a distant and foreign land, I was told there lived a very dazed and confused business owner…one who was seriously challenged and was not even good at what he, supposedly, did for a living….she was purported to spend hours on spin machines at her local health club and make everyone in the office (when she went into the office) shake in their ‘shoes’ when her presence was noted. This person did not permit her direct reports to write with ‘blue’ ink. She also did not ‘permit’ anything left on one’s desk at the end of the day….so, some staff members would stuff piles in their desks when they knew she was going to be around so they would not have to deal with complaints and, most importantly, they could spend more time on necessary work rather than arbitrary organization…This owner had issues with the supply cabinet, file drawers, return addresses on envelopes, where a staple landed on a page, the copying of envelopes along with all correspondence and how emails were sent….but the biggest PIA was the PAPERCLIPS….

YES, you read correctly, the paperclips….NO ONE was permitted to use any paperclip other than silver paperclips. There was a special section of the file cabinet allocated to this individual’s silver paperclips. The colored paperclips in any size CERTAINLY were not permitted. Little did she know at the time that no one in the office paid attention to her paperclip obsession and it was always a ‘treat’ when someone brought in those pretty, striped, animal shaped paperclips. However, on one occasion, an employee had the misfortune to be standing next to this individual when she proceeded to go through a paperclip ‘cup’ and began to ‘throw’ the small and colored paperclips onto the table…hissing all the while doing so….the employee was amazed and even a tad, bit frightened that this person was actually demonstrating severe frustrated behavior in the office. The stunned employee quickly ran into the closest office, away from the tantrum. I was told that for a while after the incident, the staff went back to only using the silver paperclips. The owner refused to admit or identify that there was a problem, which is indicative of the challenge of this type of behavior in the workplace.

On another note, an attempt was made to bring the compulsive behavior to the attention of the business owner (Alas, there was only one other employee who had the courage to do so) and other ‘management’ personnel. The courageous employee was ‘reprimanded’ for approaching the owner and was told that everyone needed to recognize that the owner’s behavior was, well….the owner’s behavior….and the owner needed to have everything put it neat ‘little boxes’. It was generally understood that other management personnel tried to justify the ‘behavior’ at the expense of their own mental health and the mental/physical health of those around them….as one employee noted, the management’s attitude toward the behavior was one of ‘entitlement'.....

This does not have to be the case because treatment can help control the symptoms of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). OCD is frequently unrecognized and untreated. Consequently, OCD can take its toll in the workplace, affecting attendance, productivity, judgment, ability to work with others and quality of work. For these reasons, proper treatment is generally in an employer’s and employee’s best interest.

People who suffer from OCD experience disturbing and intrusive thoughts, images or impulses that are temporarily relieved by performing rituals. For example, people obsessed with germs or dirt may wash their hands constantly. People who repeatedly rearrange things may be preoccupied by order and symmetry. You may notice an employee or an employer with the following behaviors that can interfere with the daily workday:

Morale problems, lack of cooperation, concentration and communication issues and increased absenteeism are other clues that OCD may exist. If such behaviors affect job performance or appear to threaten your employee’s health, one needs to take action.

Often, individuals with mental health issues are aware that something is wrong well before they seek professional help, but do not realize that their health problems also are affecting job performance. By bringing changes in work performance and behavior to your employee or employer’s attention, you may prompt your employee/employer to take the first step toward seeking a diagnosis and treatment.

A good and decent employer will be acquainted with company sponsored health benefits and employee assistance programs (EAP), if in place. For the employer, please make sure that your employee is aware of all available resources and suggest that the employee seek professional help if personal or health issues are a concern. If your employer has these issues, please do yourself and the remainder of the employees a big favor and find a way to bring this to the attention of the employer. It may be frustrating but you are dealing with a mental illness and you need to try to have this individual seek help.

Learn more about OCD and local help agencies. Doing so will prepare you should your employee/employer voluntarily disclose any health issues. Do not diagnose. Rather, encourage your employee/employer to seek professional help from a counselor or other health/mental health professional. It would be great if the employer could provide staff sensitivity training that includes information on mental illness and other disabilities. Doing so helps reduce stigmas.

Please also note that once OCD is disclosed and if the company is a certain size, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) will protect the employee from being discriminated against because of mental illness. ADA law requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations at the employee’s request. ***Eliminating minor job duties that challenge an employee’s condition – If your employee compulsively checks, reassign tasks requiring counting or verification, or get a job coach to help him/her; ***Offer flexible schedules – allow an employee with OCD to make up hours for Doctor’s appointments, etc., Or, if your employee’s medication causes drowsiness in the morning, allow the employee to come into the office later; ***Consider structural needs – an employee obsessed with having things ‘exactly’ may appreciate having an assigned parking spot; ***Make job performance expectations clear – help the employee set professional goals. Encourage the employee to continue with medication and treatment.

Work in an environment with an employer/employee that demonstrates any type of obsessive compulsive behavior can be an extremely, troubling experience. Employers/employees need to recognize their limitations, challenges, problems just as they need to identify the limitations, challenges, problems of those that work for them. I understand that a corporation is not a democracy and the rules are to be followed. I’m in Human Resources; I get all that but I do get very frustrated and tend to disregard a ridiculous ‘rule’….no matter where it comes from…I will NEVER disregard a law….but I will disregard an arbitrary ‘rule’ when I find that it is being ‘ordered’ at someone’s whim….irreverent or not, OCD is not a whim, it can be a serious illness that affects not only the individual, the individual’s family and those that work with them or depend on them…

For all of those employers out there who believe that their idiosyncrasies are ‘OK’ because they are the ‘boss’, please think again. The legacy you leave your employees is just as important as the legacy you leave your children/family; how you treat others is how you will be remembered…..as this BLOG testifies.

If you are an employer and would like assistance in how to identify Obsessive Compulsive type behaviors in your work environment, please contact me, Rosanne Bennett, at info@scbhrserv.com or at 484-718-3427. If you are an employee and would like help in dealing with a supervisor/owner that demonstrates these behaviors or you believe that you may have OCD, please contact a local mental health professional or your primary care physician. As stated, my main objective is to encourage contented employees and profitable employers….it is a two (2) way street.....

*****Mental Illness, in any form, can be serious; please, please, please learn to address it. Please also note that the information above is for informational purposes and should not be treated as mental health care or behavioral advice. Only a Physician or mental health professional is qualified to do that….Mental Health descriptions taken from www.achievedsolutions.net

The above story is 'fictionalized', however, it is based on one particular individual and I have been granted ‘permission’ to utilize the information included...